Filippo Carboni, Roberta Cozzi, Giacomo Romagnoli, Giovanna Tuscano, Cristiana Balocchi, Giada Buffi, Margherita Bodini, Cecilia Brettoni, Fabiola Giusti, Sara Marchi, Giulia Brogioni, Barbara Brogioni, Paolo Cinelli, Luigia Cappelli, Chiara Nocciolini, Silvia Senesi, Claudia Facciotti, Elisabetta Frigimelica, Monica Fabbrini, Daniela Stranges, Silvana Savino, Domenico Maione, Benjamin Wizel, Immaculada Margarit, Maria Rosaria Romano
A maternal vaccine to protect neonates against Group B Streptococcus invasive infection is an unmet medical need. Such a vaccine should ideally be offered during the third trimester of pregnancy and induce strong immune responses after a single dose to maximize the time for placental transfer of protective antibodies. A key target antigen is the capsular polysaccharide, an anti-phagocytic virulence factor that elicits protective antibodies when conjugated to carrier proteins. The most prevalent polysaccharide serotypes conjugated to tetanus or diphtheria toxoids have been tested in humans as monovalent and multivalent formulations, showing excellent safety profiles and immunogenicity...
October 6, 2023: NPJ Vaccines